Is the Puff Adder right for you?

The basics:
Along with the Saw-scaled Viper, (Echis carinatus) the Puff Adder is responsible for more snakebite deaths in Africa than any other snake. Common and tolerant of human habitation, it often chooses paths heavily traversed by people as a hunting site, and rarely moves until stepped upon. Puff Adders inject large doses of highly toxic venom deeply into their victim – obviously not a species one should consider keeping!

The Puff Adder’s huge range covers Morocco, Algeria and nearly all of Africa south of the Sahara, as well as Saudi Arabia, Oman and Yemen.

Highly adaptable, it is found in nearly all habitats other than true desert and rainforest, including savannahs, overgrown fields, rocky grasslands, open forests, farms and the outskirts of villages and cities.

Breeding:
Puff adders have unusually large litters of live young, with an average litter size of 25 and a maximum of 80+. The young are 12-17 cm (5-7 in) long at birth, and are capable of causing human fatalities.